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The passing of a celebrity can often bring out the worst in those left behind, especially when immense fortunes and legacies are on the line. Get ready for some serious family drama as we delve into the most infamous disputes and protracted legal battles that erupted after famous individuals said their final goodbyes. From battles over multi-million dollar estates to disagreements on burial sites, these stories prove that even in death, some conflicts are far from over, leaving a trail of discord in their wake.
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00:00When the kids come of age, it's all theirs in trust, but Michael's siblings get nothing.
00:05Welcome to Ms. Mojo. And today, we'll be looking at the most infamous familial disputes that
00:11erupted following the death of a famous person. It was all about the money. We became the bank
00:17of Kasem, the personal ATM machine. Ozzy Osbourne. Even before his death in July 2025,
00:25the relationship between the children of heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne wasn't exactly harmonious.
00:32The family exploded to fame in the early 2000s with their MTV reality show, The Osbournes.
00:47But Osbourne's daughter, Amy, famously moved out as a teenager after refusing to take part. Since then,
00:54her bond with siblings, Kelly and Jack, has only worsened. In 2021, Kelly even admitted publicly
01:02that they still don't get along. Oh, you don't talk at all? Okay, never mind then.
01:06We're just really different. Yeah, yeah. She doesn't understand me. I don't understand her.
01:10Fair. This strained dynamic seemed evident when the siblings reunited at their father's funeral
01:16a week after his passing. With an estimated $230 million fortune and assets spread across multiple
01:23continents, the divvying up of Osbourne's estate will likely further deepen the rift among them.
01:29Ozzy's family continues to say that he was with his family and surrounded by love.
01:34We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.
01:38Robin Williams. Robin Williams' shocking death in August 2014 triggered a painful legal battle
01:46within his family. The dispute was between his widow, Susan, and his three children from
01:51previous marriages over his $100 million estate. We're chasing it and there's no answers. And
01:57by now, I mean, we tried everything. Susan sued the children, claiming she was entitled to the
02:04Tiburon, California home she shared with Williams and everything inside it. She also sought funds
02:10for living expenses and upkeep of the property. Schneider's petition suggests she should have
02:16personal items from their home, like the tuxedo Williams wore at their wedding less than three
02:20years ago. However, Williams' children argued that she was, quote, adding insult to a terrible injury
02:27by trying to alter the terms of their father's will, which reportedly left all of his properties to them,
02:33ultimately, both sides reached a settlement in 2015. Susan retained the Tiburon house and some
02:41personal belongings, while the children received the majority of their father's memorabilia.
02:46My brothers and I have not at any point since dad's death been invited to or visited his and
02:51Susan's house in Tiburon, nor have we removed anything from it. Joan Crawford. Unlike many celebrities
02:58who pass away with a clear will, Joan Crawford left behind detailed instructions for her $2 million
03:04estate. The Oscar-winning icon divided her assets among her two youngest children, Cindy and Kathy,
03:11a few close friends, and her favorite charities. But two names were noticeably missing, her eldest
03:17children, Christina and Christopher. What do you think was wrong with her? You think she was mentally ill?
03:22I don't know. You know, I'm not a therapist. I'm not a psychologist. I'm a survivor.
03:27In fact, Crawford explicitly stated that she was excluding them, quote, for reasons which are well
03:34known to them. The siblings contested the will, claiming that Kathy and her husband had influenced
03:39their mother's decision. Ultimately, the court sided with them and awarded them a $55,000 settlement.
03:46It's not like it was worth it, but it helped you a little bit.
03:50Well, I think it's important, Joy, to give back.
03:53Yes. And to give what you left.
03:55I've always tried to do that. Yeah, yeah.
03:57Christina would go on to write the shocking expose, Mommy Dearest, which painted Crawford
04:02as a cruel and controlling figure.
04:05A daughter! Who cares as much about the beautiful dresses I give her as she cares about me!
04:15Mickey Rooney. Once one of Hollywood's highest paid actors, Mickey Rooney left behind an estate
04:22worth only $18,000 when he died in April 2014. His fortune had been drained by failed marriages,
04:29mismanagement, and alleged elder abuse by his stepson, Christopher Eber.
04:34I was eventually and completely stripped of the ability to make even the most basic decisions.
04:43In his will, Rooney disinherited his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren,
04:49leaving his entire estate to another stepson, Mark Eber, who had cared for him in his final years.
04:56This decision was challenged by Rooney's last wife, Jan Chamberlain, who claimed he had been under undue influence.
05:03The expert says it may be Rooney's signature, but the stark differences reveal he could have signed
05:07it under duress or under the influence of drugs.
05:10With so little money to fight over, the family dispute turned to his burial. Jan and Christopher
05:16wanted him buried in a modest family plot, while Mark insisted on the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
05:22In the end, Mark won.
05:24The family's concerned with this sudden onset that something nefarious may have led to his sudden death.
05:29He appeared to be in good health, and then the next thing they know he's dead and he's changed his will.
05:33Bob Marley.
05:35When he died in May 1981, reggae icon Bob Marley left no will.
05:40As a result, his $30 million estate fell under Jamaican estate laws, which granted about 55%
05:46to his wife Rita and divided the remainder among his children.
05:50You have a lot of possessions, a lot of money in the bank.
05:53Possessions make you rich?
05:55I don't have that type of richness.
05:57My richness is life forever.
05:59However, the family was denied rights to his image, which left the estate vulnerable to intense legal battles.
06:06Business associates, former collaborators, and even people claiming to be Marley's children all sought a share of his fortune.
06:13So, you guys have how many brothers and sisters?
06:17I know that's a complicated question.
06:19I think it's 12.
06:22I don't know what he's doing.
06:23In a misguided attempt to protect the estate, Marley's attorney and accountant convinced Rita to forge his name on backdated documents.
06:32When this scheme was uncovered, she was removed as a trustee.
06:36Eventually, in 1991, the Jamaican Supreme Court ruled that Rita and Marley's children held exclusive rights to his name, likeness, and image.
06:46It's sort of easy for us because it's a family affair and it goes with the instinct of it's in you.
06:54James Brown
06:55It took 15 years for the family of singer James Brown to finally settle his estate.
07:00Brown passed away in 2006, leaving behind assets estimated between $5 and $100 million.
07:07And more than a dozen lawsuits were filed to partake of that fortune.
07:11They wanted to paint this picture that we were lying.
07:15We just wanted more money.
07:16And that was it.
07:17His last partner, Tomi Rae Heine, was however excluded after their marriage was deemed invalid because she was still legally married to another man.
07:26The family dispute extended beyond money, as they also disagreed on how he should be buried.
07:31Did Mr. Brown have the right to expect that his will and trust would be enforced by the court?
07:39Absolutely.
07:40As a result, Brown's body remained inside a gold coffin in the cold storage of a funeral home for two months.
07:46In 2021, a settlement was finally reached, with Brown's music royalties going towards establishing scholarships for underprivileged children in South Carolina and Georgia.
07:58James Brown's family is shocked to learn that the majority of the musician's estate will not go to them.
08:03Instead, it will go towards the education of needy children.
08:07Casey Kasem
08:08Legendary radio host Casey Kasem hadn't even died before his family became locked in a bitter feud.
08:15As his health declined from Lewy body dementia, Kasem's children accused his second wife, Jean, of isolating him and preventing them from visiting.
08:24We are an extremely close-knit family. Extremely.
08:28And his family means more to him than anything.
08:30So why she is blocking us is, it's the only...
08:34It's dumbfounding, really.
08:35After his passing in June 2014, the conflict worsened.
08:39Kasem's children filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Jean, alleging elder abuse and claiming that her actions hastened their father's decline.
08:48Jean killed my father.
08:50Whether it was premeditated or whether it was just by her careless actions.
08:56If someone killed your father, wouldn't you want justice?
09:00Jean denied these accusations and countersued.
09:03She accused the children of similar misconduct and argued that they only wanted a share of Kasem's $100 million estate.
09:11The dispute also extended to his burial.
09:14While his children wanted him interred in Los Angeles, Jean had his body flown to Norway and buried there against their wishes.
09:22My dad's never been to Norway. She's not Norwegian.
09:26What is going on here?
09:28When you tell so many lies, you get caught up in them.
09:30Jimi Hendrix
09:31The death of Jimi Hendrix in September 1970 sparked a bitter family dispute that would drag on for decades.
09:38Because he left no will, control of his estate went to his father, Al, who excluded Jimi's younger brother, Leon.
09:45Along with occasional lump sums, Al receives around $75,000 a year in royalties.
09:50And to him, it's more money than he's ever seen in his lifetime.
09:53At first, the estate was modest.
09:56But as his music continued to sell, its value grew enormously.
10:00After Al's death in 2002, he left the estate, by then worth an estimated $80 million, to his adopted daughter, Janie Hendrix, who further tightened the grip on Jimi's image and music rights.
10:13And then there's, you know, trademark.
10:15You have to make sure you stay on your trademark, because if you don't, if you don't use it, you lose it.
10:19And you have to make sure you protect your trademarks.
10:23Since then, Janie has blocked any attempt by Leon to profit from the Hendrix name.
10:28Although the family reached a settlement in 2015, Janie took Leon back to court in 2021 for trying to use the name commercially.
10:36After he died, I was cut out of the will.
10:42And the whole Hendrix family, in fact.
10:44Michael Jackson
10:45Ever since his sudden death in June 2009, Michael Jackson's estate has generated over $2 billion.
10:52Needless to say, control over these immense assets has caused ongoing tensions in his family.
10:58Michael's siblings all have different motives.
11:02Some passionately care about the kids.
11:04Some want the money that go with the kids.
11:07Some want the money.
11:08In his will, Jackson left his estate to his mother, Catherine, his three children, and several charities, while excluding his siblings and his father, Joseph.
11:18They soon challenged the will's validity, claiming that the Jackson's signature was forged, but their case was dismissed.
11:24They're crying conspiracy over his death, calling the will fake, flawed, and fraudulent, claiming the executors are stressing out grandma.
11:32The dispute soon extended to Jackson's chosen executors, as some siblings tried unsuccessfully to pressure them into resigning.
11:40Even Jackson's daughter Paris accused the executors in 2025 of skimming money from the estate.
11:46And she's saying, hey, wait a minute, three law firms are claiming $625,000 in fees, and here's the problem.
11:55She says two of them have already been paid.
11:57With an ever-growing posthumous brand, it's hard to see an end to the battles over Jackson's fortune.
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12:19Prince.
12:20To see how chaotic things can become when a wealthy celebrity dies without a will, look no further than the case of Prince.
12:26He did not have a will. That is severely complicating matters, and we're going to see its bitter effects this week because the family is headed to court for the first time over his massive fortune.
12:36The legendary musician passed away in April 2016, leaving behind neither a spouse nor children.
12:42As a result, his six siblings immediately laid claim to his $156 million estate, and they were eventually declared his legal heirs.
12:51In addition to Prince's six siblings, Air Hunters International says they found a seventh potential heir, a teenage grandniece, the granddaughter of another one of Prince's half-brothers who died years ago.
13:03But even among themselves, the siblings couldn't agree on how the estate should be divided, which often sent the case in and out of court.
13:11The legal battles dragged on for six years, during which two of the siblings also died.
13:16Finally, in 2022, a settlement was reached, splitting the estate between three of the siblings and a music company that purchased the other's shares.
13:25You've got two groups now. You've got one group with Prince O-A-T, and then you have our group, which is family and friends of Prince.
13:34What are your thoughts on these cases? Let us know in the comments.
13:38His intention was to not have this in the courts. As an intensely private person, Mr. Williams wouldn't have wanted this.
13:46It's related to City of Prince.
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